Advise And Consent

"Extraordinary"

Advise And Consent Review


Everybody loves Henry Fonda -- but what if he was a freakin' commie!?

Otto Preminger turned his eyes from the legal system (Anatomy of a Murder) to American politics in the underseen and tragically underappreciated Advise and Consent.

The film plays out on a Red Scare-era senate floor, where the ailing president has put Fonda up as his nominee for Secretary of State. Naturally, party politics erupt as the conservatives try to discredit Fonda, eventually turning up a witness who claims he was involved in a communist party of sorts years ago. Meanwhile, another plot erupts from the other side of the aisle, accusing Fonda's main detractor (Don Murray) of equally nefarious activities (at least for 1962).

Above both of them are senior senators played by Walter Pidgeon and Charles Laughton (clearly on his last legs here, this was his final movie), who play puppetmasters over their younger charges.

Advise and Consent may not be completely realistic -- and the timing of Consent's machinations are uncannily tidy -- but as a time capsule look into American politics in the '60s it couldn't be more insightful. Preminger may have been Austrian, but he understood exactly how corruption, dedication, vindictiveness, and -- above all -- the awfulness of party politics have left America with a bareful functional democracy today. Though the action, so to speak, takes place almost entirely behind closed doors and in committee meetings, it couldn't be more involving. What will become of Fonda -- who ends up being just a minor player in this drama? We're hanging on until the last frame, until ultimately, we realize that that decision doesn't really even matter. It was just another meaningless vote that will be followed by another meaningless vote and another and another. Spooky.

Great performances all around, with Pidgeon stealing the show as the guy you'd definitely want as your senator -- if, that is, you had to have one.



Facts and Figures

Production compaines: Otto Preminger Films

Reviews

Contactmusic.com: 4.5 / 5

Cast & Crew

Director:

Producer:

Starring: as Robert A. Leffingwell, as Senator Seabright Cooley, as Senator Brigham Anderson, as Senate Majority Leader, as Senator Lafe Smith, as Dolly Harrison, as The President, as The Vice President, as Herbert Gelman, Eddie Hodges as Johnny Leffingwell, as Senator Fred Van Ackerman, as Ellen Anderson, as Hardiman Fletcher, as Senate Minority Leader, as Senator Orrin Knox, as Senator Bessie Adams, Malcolm Atterbury as Senator Tom August, Tiki Santos as Senator Kanaho, Raoul De Leon as Senator Velez, as British Ambassador, Janet Jane Carty as Pidge Anderson, John Granger as Ray Shaff, Larry Tucker as Manuel, as Mike, the Night Watchman, Sid Gould as Bartender, Henry Fountain Ashurst as Senator McCafferty, Kenner G. Kemp as Reporter, Leoda Richards as Senator, as Senator Stanley Danta

Contactmusic


Links


New Movies

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

After the thunderous reception for J.J. Abrams' Episode VII: The Force Awakens two years ago,...

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Like the 2015 original, this comedy plays merrily with cliches to tell a silly story...

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

There's a somewhat contrived jauntiness to this blending of fact and fiction that may leave...

Ferdinand Movie Review

Ferdinand Movie Review

This animated comedy adventure is based on the beloved children's book, which was published in...

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Director Dave McCary makes a superb feature debut with this offbeat black comedy, which explores...

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

A dramatisation of the real-life clash between tennis icons Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs,...

Shot Caller Movie Review

Shot Caller Movie Review

There isn't much subtlety to this prison thriller, but it's edgy enough to hold the...

Advertisement
The Disaster Artist Movie Review

The Disaster Artist Movie Review

A hilariously outrageous story based on real events, this film recounts the making of the...

Stronger Movie Review

Stronger Movie Review

Based on a true story about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, this looks like one...

Only the Brave Movie Review

Only the Brave Movie Review

Based on a genuinely moving true story, this film undercuts the realism by pushing its...

Wonder Movie Review

Wonder Movie Review

This film may be based on RJ Palacio's fictional bestseller, but it approaches its story...

Happy End  Movie Review

Happy End Movie Review

Austrian auteur Michael Haneke isn't known for his light touch, but rather for hard-hitting, award-winning...

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Seemingly from out of nowhere, this film generates perhaps the biggest smile of any movie...

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

A Victorian thriller with rather heavy echoes of Jack the Ripper, this film struggles to...

Advertisement
Artists
Actors
    Filmmakers
      Artists
      Bands
        Musicians
          Artists
          Celebrities
             
              Artists
              Interviews